Origami and materials science

Abstract

Origami, the ancient art of folding thin sheets, has attracted increasing attention for its practical value in diverse fields: architectural design, therapeutics, deployable space structures, medical stent design, antenna design and robotics. In this survey article, we highlight its suggestive value for the design of materials. At continuum level, the rules for constructing origami have direct analogues in the analysis of the microstructure of materials. At atomistic level, the structure of crystals, nanostructures, viruses and quasi-crystals all link to simplified methods of constructing origami. Underlying these linkages are basic physical scaling laws, the role of isometries, and the simplifying role of group theory. Non-discrete isometry groups suggest an unexpected framework for the design of novel materials.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
May 24, 2021
Source ID
10.1098/rsta.2020.0113

Entities

People

  • Fan Feng
  • Hanxiao Liu
  • P. Plucinsky
  • Richard D. James

Organizations

  • Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
  • Office of Naval Research
  • Simons Foundation
  • University of Cambridge
  • University of Minnesota
  • University of Southern California

Tags

Readers

  • Nanoscale Plasmonic Nanotechnology
  • Software Engineering
  • Theoretical Analysis.

Technology Areas

  • AI & ML
  • Autonomy
  • Autonomy - Autonomous System Control
  • Microelectronics
  • Space